Smoke stack cover



Nov. 27, 1956 c. T. GOUDY 2,771,834

SMOKE STACK COVER Filed Dec. 10, 1954 INVENLOR (ALT. Qou/DY ATTORNEYS United States Patent M 2,771,834 SMOKE STACK COVER Carl T. Goudy, Kokomo, Ind. Application December 10, 1954 Serial No. 474,567 1 Claim. (Cl. 9859) This invention relates to smoke stack covers, and more particularly has reference to a wind resistant cover adapted to be adjusted, by remotely controlled means, to a fully closed position and to a plurality ofopen positions.

One important object of the present invention is to provide a cover of the type stated wherein the lid will look at any position to which it isadjusted, so as to remain comparatively stationary even in the presence of high winds.

In this connection, it is to be noted that particularly in school buildings and various other buildings where furnaces are used for only a part of the year, a cover of the type stated is an important part of a complete smoke" stack installation, since it protects the inside of the st'ac'kfrom rain and the other elements when the furnace is not in use, thus eliminating the great damage which is done to boilers and stacks from rain running down within the stack, causing destruction of parts of the boilers by the action of corrosive acids.

Heretofore, however, those smoke stack covers of which I have knowledge are not adjustable swiftly within a wide range, from a fully closed position in which the cover is seated against the top of the stack, and any of various open positions including a full open position in which the cover extends vertically close to the side Wall of the stack below the top of the stack. Further, so far as is known, smoke stack covers as previously devised have not been so designed as to automatically lock in each position to which the covers are adjusted, to resist effectively the action or pressure of wind blowing thereagainst.

Among important objects of the invention are the provision of a smoke stack cover which will have the desirable characteristics noted above, and it is further proposed to provide a design for a smoke stack cover as stated which will not interfere in any way with rigging, whenever it becomes necessary to paint or otherwise maintain the stacks.

Yet another object of importance is to so form the smoke stack assembly as to dispose the moving parts thereof fully out of the path of dirt emanating from the stack, thereby to keep said moving parts in clean, working condition at all times.

Still another object of importance is to provide a smoke stack cover as stated which will be relatively simply constructed, easy to install, rugged and trouble free in operation, and adapted to reduce maintenance work on the cover to a minimum.

Other objects will appear from the following description, the claim appended thereto, and from the annexed drawing, in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a smoke stack equipped with a cover formed according to the invention, a portion of the stack being broken away;

Figure 2 is an enlarged side elevational view of the upper portion of the stack and cover, the dotted lines showing the lid in a partially opened position;

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view on line 3-3 2,771,834 Fate'nted Nov. 27,- 1956 2, of Figure 1, the dotted lines showing" the lid in a full open position; and

Figure 4 is a sectional view on line 4-4 of Figure 2 The reference numeral 10 has been applied generally to a conventional smoke stack, equipped with a cover 12 formed according to the invention.

The cover includes a circular lid 14 formed to a diameter substantially equal to the outer diameter'of the stack and integrally provided, at its periphery, with a frustro conical, depending flange 16 which, when the lid is in closed position, projects downwardly to insure against the entry of rain, snow, or the like between the lid and the top of the stack;-

Welded to the top surface of the lid-14, and extending radially thereof, is a flat arm 18 of strap metal material, having an outer end projecting beyond the periphery of the lid and integrally formed, at a location spaced radially outwardly from the lidperiphery, with a depending, relatively short extension arm 20 terminating at its lower end in a sleeve ZZZ-receiving a'horizontally disposedshaf-t Lie-Welded or otherwise fixedly secured to the sleeve. The opposite end portions of the shaft are rotatably engaged in coaxialhinge or bearing'sleeves 26 carried by brackets fixedly secured to and projecting outwardly from the side wall of the stack below and in closely spaced relation to' the topof the stack.

Keyed or otherwise made rotatable with the shaft 24 is a gear 3'0 meshing withaworm 32 vertically disposed adjacent the stack and fixedly mounted upon the upper end of aworm rotating shaft 34- journalled, at locations spaced longitudinally thereof, in coaxial bearing brackets 36 mounted upon and projecting outwardly from the stack. Shaft 34 is of a length slightly less than the overall length of the stack, and at its lower end, the shaft 34 is coupled coaxially to the shaft of a drive motor 38 mounted upon a motor support bracket carried by the stack adjacent the lower end thereof. It will be understood that if desired, the motor can be omitted, and in its stead there could be used a crank rotatable by hand.

It will be noted that the gears 30, 32 are disposed below the horizontal plane of the top of the stack, and thus, are out of the path of dirt emanating from the stack. Further, it is preferred that the several bearings as, 26 be of the pillow block type, sealed in grease to reduce maintenance to a minimum. Further, the work gear 32 and the gear 30, in a commercial embodiment, would preferably be housed and sealed in grease, again for the purpose of reducing maintenance while shielding the same from the elements.

In use, the motor or other shaft rotating means can be operated to adjust the lid to the closed position shown in full lines in the several figures of the drawing, when the smoke stack is not in operation. In this position of the lid, the interior of the smoke stack is eflectively covered, so as to insure that rain or snow will not enter the same.

Since a geared connection is used with the lid, the lid locks in each position to which it is adjusted, and accordingly, in its closed position there will be no wind chatter. Further, when the lid is opened it is Wind resistant, and does not tend to vibrate or move to any appreciable degree under the pressure of the wind. The geared connections, again, lock the lid in any position of opening or closing of the same.

It may be noted that the lid is adjustable about its pivot axis 24 through a full 270 of a circle, so that the lid can swing from the horizontal position shown in full lines in Figure 3, fully to the dotted line position in Figure 3, in which dotted line position the lid depends vertically along the side of the stack, in an out of the way location. This results from the particular formation and relative arrangement of lid, the pivot axis thereof, and the arm means 18, 20 of angular formation mounting the lid for movement about the said pivot axis.

Still another characteristic of importance in the con- 'struction resides in the fact that it is so designed as to interfere to a minimum extent with the rigging of painters or other workers charged with the responsibility of maintenance of the stack exterior.

It is believed apparent that the invention is not necessarily confined to the specific use or uses thereof described above, since it may be utilized for any purpose to which it may be suited. Nor is the invention to be necessarily limited to the specific construction illustrated and described, since such construction is only intended to be illustrative of the principles, it being considered that the invention comprehends any minor change in construction that may be permitted within the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

A smoke stack cover comprising a flat lid adapted to overlie the top of a smoke stack in position covering the same, said lid in its stack-covering position lying in a horizontal plane; an arm secured fixedly to the lid and extending diametrically thereof, said arm having one end projecting radially, outwardly a substantial distance beyond the periphery of the lid, the arm including at the outer extremity of its projecting portion a depending, integral extension terminating at its lower end in a sleeve; a pair of brackets adapted for mounting upon said stack below the cover, said brackets being disposed at opposite sides of said sleeve and being formed with hearing sleeves aligned coaxially with the sleeve of the extension; a shaft journaled horizontally in the sleeves of the brackets and passing through and fixedly secured to the first named sleeve, said shaft supporting the cover upon the bracket for rotational movement about the axis of the shaft through a 270 are from its stack-covering position to an open position in which the cover depends vertically from the shaft inwardly of the shaft to be disposed in closely spaced relation to the side wall of the stack; a gear secured to one end of the shaft and having a radius less than the distance between the shaft axis and the periphery of the cover for swinging of the cover through said are about the gear with the periphery of the cover spaced from the gear periphery through the full range of movement of the cover between said positions thereof; an elongated shaft extending normally to the length of the first shaft and extending downwardly from the first shaft for disposition in closely spaced relation to the side wall of the stack; a plurality of vertically aligned bearings in which the second named shaft is journaled, said vertically aligned bearings being adapted for connection to said stack at locations spaced longitudinally of the stack; a worm gear secured to the upper end of the second named shaft in mesh with the first named gear and disposed in engagement with that portion of the first named gear nearest the stack for disposition of the worm gear out of the path of swinging movement of the'cover; and means at the other end of the second named shaft for rotating the same.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS I 415,360 Fowler Nov. 19, 1889 797,253 Banister Aug. 15, 1905 2,350,102 Fairbanks May 30, 1944 2,463,662 Wallace Mar. 8, 1949 2,560,272 Boswell et al. Mar. '19, 1951 

